art – Page 21 – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS

The Cut Season 2 Episode 31

It’s been a strange and unsettling week. We have been to the cinema and eaten out. Three times! We have been to Ikea to sort out bits and bobs for a badly-overdue refurb of Cut Central. We even went to the launch night of a swinging new arts hub in the middle of Reading. Sitting on the first floor terrace, enjoying the views of Crispy Dosa and the Oxford Road Travelodge while sipping a glass of wine we thought to ourselves ‘Is this how it used to be? Is this what normal feels like?’ It’s been so long. Kinda nice to crack open the airlock. But, yes, strange.

This week we go lowbrow with the comics coverage, extremely geeky with the music bit and go wild in a famous bathhouse.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

The Cut Season 2 Episode 30

A week of freedom, and to our eyes little seems to have changed. Most people are still wearing masks and socially distancing. We went to one of our favourite pubs in Reading (The Fox And Hounds in Caversham, try the loaded fries) which was table service only and all the more pleasant for it. It feels like we’ve heard the official advice, saw it for bullshit and decided to stay safe. Well, for the most part anyway. It could all shift again by this time next week.

But hey, at least we have links for you. Comics chat, saving chocolate and a disagreement about vinyl.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

(featured image from our pal and X&HTeam-mate Dominic Wade).

The Cut Season 2 Episode 29

The Second Summer Of Covid. We are entering unknown territories, expected to act as if things are back to normal when they clearly are not. Will you be wearing a mask when you next go shopping? What happens if you get pinged by the NHS app? It feels to us that we have to navigate these strange new waters without a map or guidance, left by a government with other priorities to sink or swim. Strange days indeed.

Anyway. Let’s check out this week’s linkeration, which includes Nicolas Cage and a pig, the late renaissance of a pair of musical legends and a comic about wombats.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

The Cut Season 2 Episode 28

Well yes so football, apparently. Any excuse to throw beer in the air instead of down your neck which seems to be the more logical place for it to go. For those of you who enjoy such diversions, have a jolly nice time and we hope you get the result you want. As for The Cut… business as usual.

This week, that business includes the race to document the Titanic before it vanishes, an extremely horrible book and the pitfalls of translating English nonsense verse into Chinese.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

The Cut Season 2 Episode 27

We understand there to be a sporting fixture scheduled for this evening which will garner the attention of a significant portion of the British public. Here at The Cut, we remain mildly uninterested in the whole rigmarole, although we obviously wish the national team the very best of luck. We’re waiting for the Olympics, frankly. At least there’s a bit of variety.

This week, join us in the joys of accidental connections, the delight of queer beer and bounce with us to a wild reinvention of a classic slab of metal.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

The Cut Season 2 Episode 26

It’s been a long, busy week. The afterglow from our staff retreat barely lasted a day before it was wiped away with the demands of the fast-paced, high-pressure world of newsletter production. But we are here for you, Readership. Our sacrifice is your reward.

As we start this sunny weekend, let us entertain you with the insides of bowling balls, the fiftieth anniversary of a stone cold classic and the eerie sounds of The Apprehension Engine.

Now is the time. Here is the place. This is The Cut.

The Cut Season 2 Episode 19

By the time this episode drops, the Cut Crew will be on retreat, comfortably snugged into a big cottage by the sea, somewhere far from Reading. It will be a time of healing, a chance to regain perspective, a moment to reflect and re-energise as the world swings into whatever it’s deciding to call normal this week. We hope, Readership, you’re able to find your own path through the woods and out into the sunshine.

In this episode—purple Smurfs, Duke Ellington’s tips on creativity and the costumes of Ferris Bueller.

If (time) = NOW and (place) = HERE then (this) = … anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?

The Cut 🗡️Issue 23

We had a link from Wired as the opener this week, on how the work/life balance has become irretrievably skewed (https://www.wired.com/story/how-work-became-an-inescapable-hellhole/ if you’re interested) but we realised you all know this already. So let’s put that nonsense to one side and instead centre up the nonsense you have come to know and love over the last several months.

This week, scary sound effects, an iconic bus route and a really rather funky musical instrument you can all play.

Now is the time, here is the place. This is The Cut.

Life During Lockdown: Corona Comix

If I’ve started picking up pens and paper again, things must be strange…

Wilde About Reading with Stephen Fry

A rare treat for the good citizens of Reading (or at least those, like TLC and I, lucky enough to get a ticket) as the Town Hall played host to the brilliant Stephen Fry. Continue reading Wilde About Reading with Stephen Fry